Research Scientist at Agricultural Research Organization, Israel
Alaa Jamal is a researcher specializing in hydrodynamics and water resources engineering. He completed his Ph.D. and M.Sc. at Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, focusing on improving crop growth models and irrigation scheduling using real-time measurements and probabilistic forecasts. Currently, he serves as a researcher in precision aquaculture at the Agricultural Research Organization, focusing on optimizing aquaculture processes through control and monitoring technologies. Previously, he held positions as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a research scholar at the University of Haifa. Alaa has published extensively and presented his work internationally, with expertise in programming languages like Matlab, Python, C, C#, and R, and proficiency in professional software such as Autocad, Office, and SolidWorks.
Professional Profiles
Education
Alaa Jamal pursued his academic journey at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa, Israel, achieving significant milestones in hydrodynamics and water resources engineering. He completed his Ph.D. from 2017 to 2020, focusing on enhancing crop growth predictions through real-time measurements. During his master’s studies from 2014 to 2017, he specialized in optimizing irrigation schedules using probabilistic weather forecasting. Earlier, from 2010 to 2014, Alaa earned his bachelor’s degree in Water Resources and Environmental Engineering, laying the foundation for his subsequent research and professional endeavors in precision aquaculture and water distribution analysis.
Professional Experience
Since 2022, Alaa Jamal has served as a researcher in precision aquaculture at the Agricultural Research Organization, focusing on optimizing aquaculture processes through advanced control and monitoring technologies. His responsibilities include preparing research proposals, supervising Master’s and Ph.D. students, and publishing peer-reviewed papers. Previously, from 2020 to 2022, he was a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he contributed to a USDA-funded project on smart irrigation techniques in the Corn Belt, USA. His work involved developing irrigation scheduling tools integrating field data, weather forecasts, and machine learning-based crop simulation models. Prior roles also include research scholar positions at the University of Haifa and teaching assistantships at Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, where he contributed to various courses in fluid mechanics, statistics, and water systems design.
Research Interest
Alaa Jamal’s research interests lie at the intersection of hydrodynamics, water resources engineering, and agricultural technologies. His work primarily focuses on optimizing crop growth models through real-time measurements and enhancing irrigation scheduling using probabilistic weather forecasting. He is particularly interested in precision aquaculture, where he explores optimal control and monitoring technologies to improve aquaculture processes. His expertise extends to developing smart irrigation techniques and analyzing water distribution networks, emphasizing the integration of data assimilation techniques like ensemble Kalman filters and genetic algorithms. Jamal’s research contributes significantly to sustainable agriculture and water resource management.
Publications and Presentations
Alaa Jamal has authored several peer-reviewed papers in prestigious journals like the Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management, Vadose Zone Journal, and Water Resources Management. He has also presented his research at various international conferences and symposia, showcasing his expertise in stochastic irrigation scheduling, data assimilation in hydrology, and optimization models in agriculture and aquaculture.
Computer Skills
He is proficient in programming languages such as Matlab, Python, C, C#, and R, and has experience with professional software including Autocad, Office, and SolidWorks.
Publications
- Real-time ammonia estimation in recirculating aquaculture systems: A data assimilation approach
- Authors: Alaa Jamal, Ahmed Nasser, Jaap van Rijn
- Year: 2024
- Journal: Aquacultural Engineering
- Volume: 106
- Pages: 102432
- Covariance-Based Selection of Parameters for Particle Filter Data Assimilation in Soil Hydrology
- Authors: Alaa Jamal, Raphael Linker
- Year: 2022
- Journal: Water (Switzerland)
- Volume: 14
- Issue: 22
- Pages: 3606
- Citations: 2
- Utilizing Matrix Completion for Simulation and Optimization of Water Distribution Networks
- Authors: Mashor Housh, Alaa Jamal
- Year: 2022
- Journal: Water Resources Management
- Volume: 36
- Issue: 1
- Citations: 1
- Genetic operator-based particle filter combined with Markov chain Monte Carlo for data assimilation in a crop growth model
- Authors: Alaa Jamal, Raphael Linker
- Year: 2020
- Journal: Agriculture (Switzerland)
- Volume: 10
- Issue: 12
- Pages: 606
- Citations: 11
- Inflation method based on confidence intervals for data assimilation in soil hydrology using the ensemble Kalman filter
- Authors: Alaa Jamal, Raphael Linker
- Year: 2020
- Journal: Vadose Zone Journal
- Volume: 19
- Issue: 1
- Pages: e20000
- Citations: 10
- Optimal Irrigation with Perfect Weekly Forecasts versus Imperfect Seasonal Forecasts
- Authors: Alaa Jamal, Raphael Linker, Mashor Housh
- Year: 2019
- Journal: Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management
- Volume: 145
- Issue: 5
- Pages: 06019003
- Citations: 16
- Comparison of various stochastic approaches for irrigation scheduling using seasonal climate forecasts
- Authors: Alaa Jamal, Raphael Linker, Mashor Housh
- Year: 2018
- Journal: Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management
- Volume: 144
- Issue: 7
- Pages: 04018028
- Citations: 13